Heavy is the Head that Wears the Crown

Soft. A crybaby. A masochist. These are all terms that have been tossed around to describe David Price after the interview with Stan Grossfeld on March 7th. At first glance, it looks like

all the makings of another meltdown under the white hot lights of expectations that are part and parcel of plying your trade at Fenway Park. Adrian Gonzalez blamed his shortcomings on God. Carl Crawford blamed his on everyone else. And who can forget John Lackey? He was seen as a miserable bastard that stomped around the mound showing up his fielders until he became a horse in the 2013 playoff title run.

Price is correct about one thing - he needs to be better, and I believe he will be. The problem is that he is drawing a contentious line in the sand between himself and the city he plays for on three counts - his social media use, the fact that he feels dehumanized and the racial tension he alluded to in an earlier interview. Here are three comments of his that I pulled out of his interview with Grossfeld.

• "People (of Boston) don't care about what I do, or the type of person I am.

This was the comment that many attributed to Price being soft, and quite frankly on the surface, it seems reasonably accurate. He's only been in Boston one season, and how many of us get an opportunity to delve into a player's personal life. What does he want us to know? He has the platform to tell us anything he wishes. Not many fans would have access to a professional ballplayer for a "Q & A"  on what makes them tick. Does he want to hold town hall meetings to tell everyone his favorite color or how he prefers his steak cooked? We all know he hates Dunkin' Donuts coffee (tongue planted firmly in cheek).  

He blamed this on the media because they never asked about what his interests were off the field. Why wait for the question? Call a press conference to promote your generosity. Clay Buchholz's charity work was well-known off the field with the Clay Buchholz Foundation. It was also prevalent on the field when Clay pitched hence his new digs in Philly where his work continues this spring. Everyone was also well-aware of Jon Lester's work to support cancer survivors.

As far as what he went through, as he put it, he has to realize he's coming into a searing hotbed as far as baseball markets go. He was very aware of this due to the fact that he pitched for 7 years in the division with Tampa Bay. The guy shot off his mouth about Red Sox icon David Ortiz and got plenty of blowback. In fact, Price was nervous about meeting Ortiz last spring because of his criticism of Big Papi thinking he was "bigger than the game". The racial taunts aside, he said he was hurt about what fans shouted to him in the bullpen. Shocking! The guy is making 30 million a season, was suppose to be the rotation anchor, and turned in a dogshit first half with a 9-6 record to go along with a 4.34 ERA.

Getting back to the racial slurs, victimization because of the color of someone's skin is always an extremely serious matter and should never be ignored or tolerated. The fact that he said that there is still racism in the world isn't exactly an astonishing revelation. However, it can be misconstrued by Price's comments that he's branding the entire city for the actions of a few ignorant assholes. It's fuel for those who already have an issue with his performance tossing another log on the fire of discontent and further distancing himself from the fanbase.

For the most part, I feel Boston fans do care that the players they root for are good citizens, that they are gracious with their time when dealing with the public and that they are hard-working. I think those characteristics also describe David Price.

• "I have fun on Twitter; Boston isn't going to change that."

This is the comment that threw me for a loop. How are the people of Boston preventing him from having all this fun he claims he has on Twitter? Personally, I think the guy needs a respite from social media. Price goes from making light of himself to having these little pissing matches when all the while he could be telling us more about himself. This charade that he's just a normal guy on Twitter ribbing people doesn't fly because it isn't true. He's a top-flight professional baseball pitcher making gobs of money who has precious little in common with the average Joe. 

This is exactly why I don't follow ball players on Twitter. What type of exchange am I going to have with a Red Sox player that would be meaningful with regards to our personal lives? As far as baseball goes, I am on Twitter to keep up with the team by chatting with other fans, sharing a laugh and gaining insight about the players by the stats provided by various websites and insiders. As far as learning about players themselves, it boils down to looking at the boxscores and reading the articles written by reporters that know what they are talking about.

That whole "stick with me" and "I'm gonna make you love me" schtick last season bordered on pathetic pandering for acceptance. It just seemed empty and desperate. Why expose yourself to people who bring you down? Stick to baseball or have your account professionally tailored. God knows he can afford it even though he doesn't remember how much money he made last year. The old adage "don't read the sports page" has an even deeper meaning now for players. In this day and age, opinions and stats are everywhere, so it might be an advantage to block those things out to avoid distractions. This is exactly what the Red Sox don't need - a flaky left-hander pissing and moaning on Twitter. 

• "All I have to do is pitch good."

Really what more has to be said, David? He is absolutely spot on here. Expectations were high as the anointed ace coming into the 2016 campaign, and the emergence of Rick Porcello really bailed Price out especially in the first half of the season. With the acquisition of Chris Sale, he can even fly further under the radar while he recuperates from his elbow issues. I mentioned John Lackey earlier, and he is a perfect example of how to succeed with a bloated contract coupled with mediocre results - win in the playoffs.

It's no secret that this is Price's Achille's Heel. He jokes about it but it is also obvious from his posts on Twitter that this weighs on him heavily. His self-deprecation now comes off as a pleading for silence on the subject. If I say I stink in the playoffs, then I know I stink so you don't need to tell me that. Unfortunately, that's not how it works.

When you really look at his 2016 season, it certainly wasn't terrible. The guy made all his starts, missed some bats to the tune of 228 punchouts and logged 230 innings. He won 17 games which is nothing to scoff at, and even though the ERA was a tad on the chubby side, Boston made the playoffs with Price playing a vital role. The fact that Price sees this as below standard is encouraging to me and many fans. Even if he has the same type of season in 2017 with little to no improvement and wins a game or two in the playoffs, he will automatically be cast in a new light.